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Thursday, September 2, 2010

5 Recipes for Puff Pastry: #3 Chicken and Broccoli Purses

Chicken and Broccoli Purses

So far this week, we've enjoyed cheese straws as an appetizer, cinnamon palmiers for an afternoon snack and now it's time to try this extraordinary pastry for dinner. Our third recipe is based on a recipe of my mom's that I have made for years, Chicken Divan Crepes. Of course, the crepe version is delicious but it can be time consuming to make crepes. We are one of those odd households that makes a lot of crepes, thanks to my twelve year old son's passion for dessert crepes. Oh well, recipes for another day, I suppose. Anyway, for the rest of the world, crepes may be impractical to make on a week night when football practice, piano lessons and other after school activites keep you running around all night. Instead of stopping at McDonald's, come home and grab the puff pastry out of the fridge. If it is still in the freezer, lay it out on the counter. You would be surprised how fast in defrosts, once you are able to lay it out flat. You can even make the filling ahead and keep it refrigerated, then assemble them right before baking. Add a salad and fifteen minutes later you have a delicious and filling meal.

Heat the oven to 350°F. Unfold the pastry on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry sheet into a 10x14-inch rectangle. Cut the pastry sheet into 4 squares. Press the pastry squares into extra large muffin-pan cups.

In a medium size bowl, add the cubed chicken, soup, Parmesan cheese Worcestershire sauce and broccoli. Mix well. Pour the soup mixture into each pastry purse, dividing evenly between each one.Bake for 15 minutes, remove and sprinkle each one with additional Parmesan cheese and return for another 2 minutes or until golden and bubbly on top.